Unearthly Things
by B. and the Jetts
Summary: In which Jason is dead, Damian makes a friend and Dick freaks out.
1. little laugh

Dick heard Damian laughing.

It wasn't really the origin of the laughter that startled him – yeah, it was – the real thing was, it was happening more and more.

This cute little laugh would burst out of Damian when no one was around, Dick had no idea why and it was driving him mad. He'd ask his little brother – though at fourteen, he wasn't actually little anymore – what was so funny and would get this weird look from Damian and always the same answer "Nothing."

Yeah. Nothing. Because Damian was so full of giggles.

But that was all Dick would get out of him, even if he just stood there, making sure his stare was piercing and staying long enough that the silence turned awkward; Damian was either clueless or immune. It generally sucked.

Still Dick couldn't just let that laugh go, he _had_ to bust Damian's door open and look around to find out what could possibly be funny enough to produce that unearthly sound. As per usual, he found Damian lounging on the window seat with his sketchbook propped up on his knees, a slight smile still gracing his lips and no one else around.

The kid was distracted enough by whatever the hell Dick could simply _not find_ to not notice the new presence and speak lightly as if continuing a conversation "Yes, if anyone was to do such a demented thing, it would be a deranged moron like you." only then Damian acknowledged his brother "Yes, Grayson?"

"Who are you talking to?"

Damian scrunched his nose in the way that always made Dick feel like a lunatic for opening his mouth "Is there something wrong?"

"No, I just… You laughed, I just heard you talking and I wanna know who you were talking to."

The expression deepened as Damian glanced at a spot on the floor by his seat, then back at Dick "Are you daft?"

It was almost enough to make Dick back away, but hey, he already felt like a lunatic, why not act as one "Look, the faster you answer, the faster I'll leave."

"I'm talking to Jason. _Obviously._"

"Uh huh, uh huh…" Dick nodded quickly "And Jason is your imaginary friend."

Now that made Damian bristle "Grayson, if you came all the way up here just to insult him, then-"

"Yeah, no." Dick interrupted the pissed off rant "I mean who is _him_, Damian?"

"Jason, you brainless freak!"

"Okay… And where is this Jason?"

Damian shook his head, completely mystified "Have you lost your sight along with your mind? He's right here." he pointed at the same spot by his seat he'd been glancing earlier.

The same empty spot.

"Sure, sure…" Dick agreed distractedly "You do know there's no one there, right?"

The kid exchanged a look with the no one sitting on the floor before frowning "Yes, there is."

"Jason's sitting there" it was more of a question then a statement, but under the circumstances it would have to do.

"Grayson, are you mocking me?"

Dick waved his outturned hands in a plea "Could you just… humor me?"

"Fine, but you better have a very good reason to be behaving like… yourself." Damian fumed, laying his sketchbook on the seat and straightening up "Jason, this is my so called brother Richard Grayson. I promise you we do not share any blood relation. Richard, the one you've been antagonizing with that ridiculous attitude is Jason Todd."

"Jason T- Wait, _what_?!"

"I'm done talking to you" Damian declared standing up, marching to the door and slamming it shut.

Dick stared at the carvings on the wood, his hand itching to turn the knob again so he could ask if Damian was yanking his chain, but when the kid's voice drifted through the walls "See what I have to deal with? And Grayson's the _good_ one." Dick realized that maybe this was not a horrifyingly well designed prank.

Maybe Damian really did have an imaginary friend.

Dick just had to figure out why the hell it was a former _dead_ Robin who Damian was supposed to know nothing about.

* * *

**A/N.:** This was a tiny, _tiny_ drabble that got out of hand... I saw a prompt on tumblr a while ago about Jason being Damian's imaginary friend, and I couldn't get it out of my head. (now I can't find the prompt anymore)

And then there was this. It just amuses me, so yeah.


	2. weirdly pretty

"Why haven't I met your family?" Jason asked once, lying on the floor with his feet propped up on the window seat, if Damian looked at him just right, it looked like he was the one sitting up.

"You _want_ to meet my sorry excuse for a family?"

"No." Jason frowned to the ceiling "I just wanna know why I haven't."

"They're rarely here" Damian said simply and sketched a bird hit by an arrow, falling from the sky "Why haven't I met yours?"

"You don't leave this house. Ever."

"Apparently, neither do you."

"Yeah well… " Jason shrugged and knocked the toes of his sneakers together "They're dead. My family. That's why you've never met them."

Damian's brow furrowed in thought as he considered the new information. Then he pulled Jason's foot and began to draw on his shoe.

Damian didn't know why he befriended Jason – they didn't really like each other, argued more often than not, most of their conversations ended in fistfights… he could go on – and he voiced that concern constantly, to which Jason would reply "Why the hell not?"

Apparently the dislike, arguing and fistfights weren't enough of a reason for Jason.

In the end, Damian guessed this was about companionship. Not that he cared for it, being alone was so much easier, but Jason was simply _there_.

It took some time to get people to understand that Damian was not some murderous lose cannon, but in the later years living with father, he found that he was mostly left to himself; father had work and women to care for, Grayson had a circus and a bleeding heart, Drake was a joke, and Damian just wasn't a pressing concern for none of them anymore. There were days when he only met father for patrol, if that.

He spent days at a time with only Titus for company; sure, Alfred was there, but even if the butler didn't seem annoyed by Damian's presence, the man would rather work by himself.

Then Jason clawed his way into Damian's life, making him look back at his former solitude with longing.

He wasn't quite sure of _how_ he met Jason anymore, he had been awake for nearly 72 hours and finished patrol with the sun high up on the sky. To say his body was on autopilot wasn't an understatement at all, so he remembers opening the front door for Titus and seeing the dog's mad dash, there's also some memory of following the barking and finding a boy pressing his back to one of the trees. His demand of "How did you get here?!" is just as clear as the "I have no idea!" he got for an answer.

After that, everything is a big blur. He is certain that threats were made and punches were thrown, but the details are completely fuzzy.

What Damian knew for sure was that after that first encounter, he'd find the boy on manor grounds every single day. You'd think that a great dane and an assassin would discourage trespassers – even if the assassin part was mostly a secret –, but no.

Damian had no clue as to how the boy managed to not trip any of the several, _several_ alarms, but soon learned that he was no threat and his name was Jason.

Actually, Jason seemed confused in most of their first meetings.

"You remind me of someone." Jason would say leaning in on Damian's personal space, straining his eyes in concentration.

"I do not."

"You don't even know who I'm talking about, how can you be so sure?"

"_You_ don't even know who you're talking about, that's how I'm sure."

"You still remind me of someone."

"Why are you here, again?"

Jason looks around then, his hair seemed to be permanently windblown as there wasn't even a breeze flowing by "I… Couldn't leave."

"I could make you leave."

Jason shrugged "I'll just come back. I always do."

Titus hated Jason, sometimes Damian did too, but eventually the boys wound up spending time on Damian's bedroom to get away from the dog. And every time they did, Alfred would leave a tray of snacks by the door, always so careful not to bother them.

In that aspect, Grayson was anything but considerate and since his return to Gotham, would make himself very present.

That in itself was condemning behavior, but not one that Damian was unfamiliar with, Grayson had little to no respect for Damian's personal space. But when Jason was involved, Grayson's level of ridiculousness rose up to new extremes.

The man walked in repeatedly, pretending not to know that Damian had company, in a sorry attempt to join the conversation.

Jason kept snickering at that, like it was endearing – it really wasn't – but always looked slightly sick afterwards.

"If you're about to throw up, tell me so I can kick you out."

"Huh?" Jason lifted slightly unfocused eyes "Oh, I don't even know. Your brother's too pretty, I get all hot and bothered."

"You are disgusting."

Jason always gave this self-satisfied grin after saying something nightmare inducing, which was pretty often.

But after Grayson's last appearance, and their introduction – not to mention the whole 'imaginary friend' fiasco – Jason's cheeks never quite regained color, accentuating that sick look.

Damian slid to the floor, sitting awkwardly next to Jason, expecting a dish out of emotion of epic proportions, but they merely sat in silence until it was dark enough for Jason to leave.

Jason always left when it got dark, precisely when Damian had to start getting ready for patrol, and always got back during the day, throwing pebbles – or considerably sized rocks if ignored – at Damian's window, adamant about never knocking on the front door like a normal person.

Both boys stood and though Jason looked fairly better, he had a narrowed look to his face that Damian hadn't seen in a while.

"Am I reminding you of someone?" he asked, with an amused roll of eyes.

"Yeah, you kinda are." Jason grinned cheekily.

"Do I even want to know?"

"I'm not sure… Wait!" his expression shone with enlightenment "Maybe it's _my_ imaginary friend."

"Oh, _fuck you._"

Jason's smile turned thoughtful "Your brother's weird. And pretty. What is that like? Weirdly pretty? Maybe pretty weird…"

"Good God! Go away!" Damian groaned loudly, shoving Jason all the way towards the stairs and the door.

They never said goodbye or waved or anything for that matter. Jason simply left and Damian closed the door.

In the kitchen, he found Grayson sitting there, stiff as a board following Damian with weary eyes.

"Did you just take your imaginary friend to the door?"

"Grayson, don't be rude to the guest when he's sitting right next to you."

Damian watched with calculated calm as Grayson turned slowly to stare at the empty stool beside him, his shoulders so tense they reached his ears.

"Uhm… Jason. Hi."

"Grayson?"

"Yeah?"

"You're pathetic."

* * *

**A/N.:** This really was supposed to be just a one shot, but with all the lovely reviews I decided to make another chapter.

It's just some other stuff that kept floating around in my head after I finished the first part, with Damian's point of view and all, I hope you guys enjoy it!


	3. a dog and a moron

"Alfred, is Damian lonely?"

The butler stopped polishing the silverware and arched a brow at Dick. "Ah, let's see… Master Damian is how old?"

"Fourteen."

"Fourteen…" Alfred resumed his cleaning with a thoughtful nod "Were _you_ lonely at that age, Master Richard?"

Dick rubbed his eyes "Point taken. But I mean, I went to school, I had _friends_, regular ones _and _the Teen Titans later. Damian is home schooled, so no possibility of friends there, not to mention the fact that he antagonizes pretty much the entire super hero community." he stopped talking, going for full impact, gesturing widely with his hands for emphasis "He's got a dog, Alfie. That's it. A Great Dane is his only friend."

"Ah, so you haven't heard."

"What?"

"About Master Jason." Alfred shrugged mostly with his expression "I suppose it makes sense, Master Damian is very reserved."

Now that had Dick's hair standing on end "You've… _seen_ this Jason?"

"Actually no, but I do hear them."

"What do you hear?" Alfred gave him an odd look and Dick realized he'd been leaning closer and closer and now had half his body splayed across the grand piano. He tried to play it casual, he really did…

"May I know what's bothering you?"

_It's nothing, Alfred. I just think that Damian's friend – only friend – is a manifestation of his agonizingly lonely mind and it makes me feel unbelievably guilty for being away so often. Oh and this non-existent friend? Is Jason Todd, remember him? Unruly hair, nasty temper, dead._

Yeah, now that talk would go smoothly.

"Eh, I don't even know…"

"Perhaps it would be good if you talked to the young master, then."

And that was Alfred Speak for 'Leave now'. So Dick did.

He knocked on Damian's door and peeked inside "Can I come in?"

"Do I even have a choice?" Damian never even looked up from his book but Titus wagged his tail lazily from his place by Damian's socked feet.

"Not really."

"Then by all means, Richard, do come in."

Dick bit his lips to keep his smirk hidden. Damian only called him Richard either when extremely annoyed, like the name itself was a curse, or in extreme distress – the latter only happened once, and Dick didn't like to think about it.

"So…" he began looking around and Damian took of one of his earphones "Is your friend coming around today?"

Damian's eyes narrowed "What makes you think he's not here already? He _is_ invisible, isn't he?"

"I said he was _imaginary_, not invisible, but close enough. So, is he coming?"

Still eyeing him suspiciously, Damian shrugged "He might, his hours are… erratic."

"Oh, ok." he scratched between Titus' ears "Hey, how did you two meet?"

"What's it to you?"

"I come in peace, Little D." he raised his hands with the palms outturned and sat on the edge of the bed "I just wanna know more about your friend."

"The one that allegedly doesn't exist." Damian clarified "What could possibly interest you in some product of my obviously overstimulated mind?"

"I'm interested on _you_." Dick said with a light smile that got bigger when Damian rolled his eyes and put the book aside.

"Why this all of a sudden?" it was hard to decide sometimes if Damian was just being really, _really_ difficult or if he was that naturally suspicious.

"I've been away for a while… I don't know, I guess I missed you."

"Now I know you're lying."

Dick knew this was Damian being humorous, there was even a sideways smile and the appearance of a dimple to attest to that, but guilt churned in Dick's stomach nonetheless.

"That means you didn't miss _me_?" he asked dramatically, with a hand over his heart.

"Not likely" Damian said with a snort "Your sole reason for being is to embarrass me in front of my friends, why would I miss you?"

"_Friends?_ As in more than _one?_ Oh, my! Aren't you Mr. Popular."

"I do have a very wide variety of friends, which include, but are not limited to a nonexistent person, a dog and a moron."

"Wait, am I the moron?"

"Well, you are _a_ moron."

Yeah, Dick really did miss this. And wasn't that weird.

"What are you listening to?" he asked lying down next to Damian's sitting form and picking up the spare earbud.

"I don't even know, some song Jason told me about."

"I though you didn't like it when people suggested you bands and stuff."

"No, I don't like it when _you_ suggest me any sort of music."

"You wound me." that got him another sideways smile "So that's what you two talk about? Music?"

"Amongst other things."

"Like what?"

"Stuff."

"Wow, sounds exciting."

Damian shot him a look, but his fingers were drumming in time with the music, which meant he wasn't really mad, and now that Dick was paying attention, he noticed they were listening to the Imperial March.

"Why are you listening to Star Wars soundtrack?"

"Star what?"

"This is Darth Vader's theme."

"Is that supposed to mean something to me?" four years living in Gotham and no one thought of sitting the kid down to watch Star Wars… Unforgivable.

"Where did you get this?"

"Jason told me something about it agreeing with my colorful personality. I know he was mocking me with some inner joke, but the song's not completely repelling."

Dick's mind? Blown.

"Will you be staying long?" Damian asked before Dick could wrap his head around that bit of information.

"I don't know yet. Why?"

"I was just wondering."

Damian did not just wonder. Ever. But Dick knew that pushing it wouldn't get him anywhere, so he stared at his youngest brother's profile and decided that that wasn't the look of a kid – teenager really – that would make up an imaginary friend. Damian had grown so much, already having a couple of inches on Tim – which was kinda hysterical, but Alfred had banned all possible jokes about it – and stood tall at all times. He was independent, had always been.

Maybe this Jason really existed and just happened to have the same surname as the dead Robin, it could happen. Maybe Dick hadn't seen him because the boys were pranking him.

Boys played pranks. Yeah, that could be it.

He kept staring until Damian's eye twitched with irritation and he turned to face him fully.

"Well, hello there!" Dick smiled brightly and Damian scowled harder.

"And people still have the audacity to say that _I_ am the child of this household."

"The nerve of some peasants..." he sat up "I'm hungry, wanna get something to eat?"

"Gorge myself with cereal? No, thank you."

"No, let's go out. Eat something different."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Any thoughts? It's your pick."

"Chilli dogs." Damian announced throwing his legs over the side of the bed and slipping his sneakers on.

"What?"

"Will it be an issue?" he looked at Dick over his shoulder "I just… I've never had one, but if you don't like them-"

"No, no, chilli dogs are fine. I never thought you of all people would pick _that_."

"Yes, it does sound disgusting," Damian conceded, shrugging into a jacket "but Jason talks about them constantly. Call it morbid curiosity."

Call it fucking weird.

Dick watches as Damian walked by him, Titus on his heels, dressed in his black track jacket, jeans and sneakers – he'd finally grown out of the sweater vest/shorts combo – he really did look like a regular snobby teenager.

"Hey, little D, did you know that there was another Robin after me? Before Tim, I mean."

"Yes…" Damian said slowly, confused with the change of subject.

"What do you know about him?"

"He's dead."

"What else?"

Damian shrugged "Father never really recovered from his death. My knowledge of the second Robin is bare, he wasn't important enough to be studied extensively in mother's eyes."

"Being dead makes you less of a threat, I guess." Dick commented feeling slightly sick.

"I suppose so. I do know that Drake believes I'll share that Robin's fate. Is this where you wanted to get?" Damian sounded almost tired, like he was about to receive a lecture he'd heard many times before.

"Not really, no." with that Damian turned to walk out of his bedroom "Hey, D" Dick called and Damian stopped on the threshold "Are you lonely?"

For the first time in a really long time, Damian's regal posture deflated a little. Titus shoved his snout under his master's hand in a clear show of support and Damian petted his head before answering "Aren't we all?" and left without checking if Dick was following.

* * *

**A/N.:** Ok, you guys convinced me.

I'm not gonna promisse a very good story, 'cause this was really supposed to be just a one-shot, but every time I get a new idea, I'll post it, 'kay? It probably won't be very linear and if I can't think of anything else to happen I'll just stop, so I'll leave it as "complete", but feel free to follow and hope!

Hope you like this and seriously... The reviews? Freaking awesome! I never ever imagined you guys would like it this much, so yeah, think of this as a Christmas gift!

Oh, and I'm taking **tumblr** prompts, if anyone's interested talk to me, 'kay? No need whatsoever to follow me, I'm boring as hell! Just like and/or reblog the stories and we're cool!


	4. super-awesome-big-brother plan

"You know we could lose an eye at this." Jason comments even as he throws another dart "Not that I'm complaining or anything, I just wanted to point it out so when it happens, I can say 'I told you so'."

"Do _you_ have a better idea of something to do?" Damian asked shooting him a dark look, twirling his own dart, waiting for his turn.

"No, dude, you're not getting it." Jason turned to lie on his side, leaning on his elbow to get a better look at Damian "I don't want to stop, I just want to rub it in when it goes wrong."

"It won't go wrong unless you miss." Damian says as he hits bull's-eye.

Jason snorted obnoxiously "Oh yeah, 'cause you can do no wrong."

Damian looked at Jason and nodded "Yes." and made his shot without turning his head back.

Jason glanced up and groaned, hiding his face on the crook of his arm "You're so fucking annoying."

"No, I'm just _that_ good."

"Why the hell did you hang the dart board on the ceiling anyway?"

"It is good self-training. You need no one to say when you've done wrong, the dart stuck to your shoulder says that just fine."

Jason mulls that over, stretching on his back and pillowing his head on one hand "So when you miss-"

"Which I don't."

"Fine." Jason rolled his eyes "_IF_ you were fucked up and somehow missed, you wouldn't move at all? Like trying to dodge the dart?"

Damian already regretted his answer before even saying it "I wouldn't."

So Jason picked up a dart, examined it with way more concentration than necessary, even puckering his lips and frowning, making a show of pretending to think through his horrible idea.

"Just do it already." Damian told him irritably, rubbing his eyes.

Jason smiles devilishly "The first to move is chicken."

"Chicken?"

"Right. I forgot you're socially retarded." Damian kicked Jason's shin for that, which Jason retaliated without a thought and kept talking even though Damian kicked him again "I _dare_ you not to move."

He did a half-assed throw, not strong enough to even touch the dart board and both boys watched the fall in silence.

Jason grabbed Damian's wrist and started laughing with a hysterical edge. Suddenly, someone was at the door and as both boys turned their heads to look, the dart fell between them getting stuck to the floorboard.

Dick startled a bit at that, and blinked before taking a step back like he was going to close the door and leave, but stopped, apparently deciding to stay and taking a moment to look at the ceiling then back at the dart "I think you missed that."

"Thank you, Grayson" Damian said kindly which got Dick to narrow his eyes in suspicion and Jason to snicker into his arm "Did you come all the way up to my quarters only to assist in keeping the score?" he doesn't wait for an answer smiling demurely and batting his lashes "Oh, you shouldn't have…"

"Just for that, I should totally go tell Alfred what you're up to. He's gonna have your ass for poking holes in his floor."

"Sure, let's go tell him." Damian nodded still agreeable and beginning to stand and Dick sighed.

"You know something don't you?" Damian looked almost angelic with his false doe-eyed innocence and Dick runs both hands over his face "You little blackmailing son of a… Wayne. Come on, stop destroying your bedroom and let's watch a movie or something."

It was Damian's turn to narrow his eyes in suspicion "Why?"

"Why you should stop destroying your bedroom?"

"Why do you want to watch a movie with me."

Dick's expression and voice soften "I told you, I miss spending time with you."

Damian looks massively confused, but shakes off it quickly when he catches Jason's eyes on him "You're such a freak, Grayson." he mumbles awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck "Would it be okay if Jason came too?"

Dick's eyebrows shot up "I thought embarrassed you."

"You do."

"Oh well, sure, then!" Dick smiled sunnily and turned to leave "I'm waiting downstairs."

"He _embarrasses_ you?" Jason asked as soon as Dick was out of sight.

"So do you, in case you were wondering."

Jason sits up slowly "I'm gonna meet your family."

"So it seems."

"Hey." Jason calls suddenly serious, making Damian frown at him "Does that mean we're going steady?"

Damian leaves his room followed by Jason's cackles.

Dick is sprawled on the couch, flipping idly through channels not really paying attention to anything when he spots Damian "Hey, D. Where's Jason?"

Jason stumbles into Damian's back but his loony smile dials down a bit when he sees Dick. Damian elbows him "He's here." Jason shifts under Dick's stare and Damian whispers to him over his shoulder "I _dare_ you not to move."

"Sit down, then" Dick tells them after clearing his throat.

Jason was oddly quiet, doing his best not to draw Dick's attention to him. Damian kept throwing questioning looks but Jason merely nodded jerkily and stretched his lips in a smile that could just as easily be a grimace.

Damian finds himself sandwiched between his brother and his friend and begins to consider the possibility of ditching both of them and escaping back to his room. "What are we watching, Richard?" he asks instead.

The remote jumps in Dick's hand and he clears his throat again "Jason should choose, he's the guest."

The only thing Jason seems up to choosing is the nearest way out, but he manages a weak "Could we watch cartoons?"

Damian made a face at that "Are you seven?"

"Hey, cartoons are cool." Jason grumbles, crossing his arms.

"What? What did he say?" Dick stretched his neck, trying to gauge Damian's expression.

"He said he wants to watch _cartoons_. I blame this on you for letting the _guest_ choose."

Dick wouldn't stop looking at them, as if he forgot completely about the TV "I like cartoons."

"Yes, you would be one to like that." Damian said it like that was the most stupid thing imaginable.

"You don't _have_ to stay, you know?" Dick tells him a little snappy "I'd be fine watching Tom & Jerry all by myself."

Damian was beginning to feel conflicted, because as much as he did not care for cartoons, he didn't mean to offend Dick. Not noticing his friend's dilemma, Jason added "I'm a Woody Woodpecker man myself."

Damian glares at Jason, betrayal churning in his gut. How could they gang up on him? "What the hell is a Woody Woodpecker?"

"What?" Dick asks and also gets a look from Damian.

"Will you turn on your hearing aid, Grayson? Jason said he likes a woodpecker."

Dick's snort quickly turned into snickering "Woody Woodpecker, maybe?"

"Is that a real thing?" the confused outburst shouldn't be so cute, but it so was.

Dick threw a lazy arm around Damian's shoulder and pulled the kid's head to his chest in an arm-lock "Oh, Little D… I have so much useless stuff to teach you."

Damian freed himself and shoved his elbow forcefully against Dick's shoulder "You two are intolerable! Thank _God_ Jason's so scared of you."

"Jason's scared of me?"

"I'm so _not_ scared!"

"Master Richard?" Alfred called interrupting what would be Damian's annoyed answer "Someone on the phone for you, it's about the circus."

Dick jumped over the back of the couch, then came back, leaning his chin on Damian's head, draping his arms over the kid's shoulders "Don't you dare take your skinny ass of this couch, I'll be right back."

The boys watched Dick leave the room, and once he was out of sight, Jason asked "He's not coming back, is he?"

Damian smirked, Jason was finally getting the hang of things "There's absolutely no chance."

Dick was still thinking of a way to make up to Damian for leaving so abruptly in the afternoon when he got back to the manor.

He found Alfred in the kitchen, brewing some tea.

"Hey Alfie, did I have an imaginary friend as a kid?"

"I believe not, Master Richard, but it was quite hard to tell, since you were constantly talking."

"Oh, haha." Dick picked up a bowl and filled it with cereal "No, seriously, did you see it this afternoon? Better yet, did you _not_ see Jason?"

"What do you mean?"

"Jason, Damian's friend? Is imaginary."

Alfred's expression froze in moderate shock. He _was_ British after all. "Are you certain?"

"Yeah!" Dick keeps talking as he gets milk "Damian kept talking to an empty seat, _and_ he has no idea that we can't see this Jason. Whenever I asked what they were talking about Damian got mad, like he couldn't believe I didn't hear everything."

Alfred looks so shaken, Dick almost regrets telling him. "I simply cannot believe this."

Dick nodded in agreement, pouring the milk over the cereal and grabbing a spoon "Should we say something? Maybe he'll just… grow out of it on his own, right?"

"I could swear I heard them." Alfred says almost to himself.

"You probably just heard Damian being really loud."

"Not just him, I heard two voices. I never paid them any attention, but I was so certain. I even thought I saw his head beside Master Damian today on the couch."

Dick had just stuffed his mouth with cereal, so he has time to think while he chews "Maybe you just think you saw that because it was what you expected, you know? You knew Jason would be there with us, so there should be three heads sitting there, watching TV."

"Perhaps…" Alfred agrees dubiously "Oh, that poor child. He will be devastated."

Alfred's words make Dick shift uncomfortably "But he'll get over it. Damian's the strongest kid I know."

"Master Damian is indeed very strong, but there's only so much a person can withstand, and this boy means a great deal to him. Jason, imaginary or not, is his only friend."

"Oh come on… Damian has us."

"I suppose you are right, master Richard." that's Alfred Speak for 'You're full of shit and you know it' and Dick feels like a douche for saying anything.

He should be there more, he'll find the time to make sure that Damian doesn't need an imaginary friend.

Dick wanted to put his Super-Awesome-Big-Brother plan into action during patrol, but Bruce paired up with Damian for the night.

It was a rare calm night in Gotham, only minor misdemeanors, and Dick was pretty optimistic about his plan of action, deciding to start when all of them met in the Batcave.

What he didn't count on was the humongous shouting match Damian and Bruce were having when he found them.

"HEY!" he shouted louder than both "What is going on here?"

"Apparently father has issues with the fact that I have acquaintances outside the '_family_'." Damian spat the last word, making a show of air quoting it.

"You know that is not true" Bruce countered "You may have as many acquaintances as you like, but you should know not to tell them about Batman and Robin."

"I _didn't_! He didn't call me, he called _Robin_! Why aren't you listening to me?"

"Who? Who called Robin?" Dick asked, tugging the end of Damian's cape to stop his angry pacing.

"Jason!" Damian realized he just yelled in Dick's face and took a deep, calming breath "We ran across Jason during patrol, he alerted me to an armed criminal that neither father nor I had spotted, and thanks to him we're both okay now."

"Bu that's good!" Dick exclaimed looking for agreement from either of the other two "Isn't it?"

"As far as I know, yes it is!" Damian snapped, glaring at Bruce, who was impassive.

"It's not a good idea involving your civilian friends into our lives, Damian."

"How many times do I have to repeat myself? He doesn't know! It was a coincidence, we were probably close to where he lives."

"And where is that, Damian?"

Damian balked, his mouth still open "I don't know. We have never really talked about it."

Dick watched the whole exchange before picking up a very, _very_ important detail "Wait, wait. Bruce, did you meet Jason? Did you see him?"

Bruce gave him a quizzical look and Damian rolled his eyes, throwing his whole body in the motion "Ah, yes. There's also the matter of Jason's power of invisibility." he shakes his head "This is unbelievable, Richard. You would be one to jest at a time like this."

"What are you two talking about?"

"Well, father, Richard believes Jason can turn invisible. I know you do not approve of metas, father, but I assure you Jason's harmless." the sarcasm dripping from Damian's words would be funny to Dick in any other situation, as it were, Bruce was beginning to look really pissed "In fact, Richard should hire him! It would be a marketing success for the circus, wouldn't it? Jason Todd, the invisible boy!"

"_What?_" Bruce's raging tone made even Damian cut himself short "What did you say?"

"Richard said-"

"_No!_" Bruce growled and Damian glanced in confusion at Dick, not sure what he said to elicit such reaction "The _name._ What was the _name_?"

"Jason Todd-" the name was barely out of Damian's mouth and Bruce hit him backhand across the face.

It is impossible to tell which of the three is more shocked. Bruce holds the offensive hand so hard that his knuckles turn white.

Damian scoffs contemptuously, as if he knew something like that would happen sooner or later. His cheek is colored an angry red and his eyes are blazing with fury, yet he says nothing, choosing to leave instead.

"Damian…" Bruce tries weakly, but Dick holds him back.

"What the fuck was that?!"

"I didn't think, I…" Bruce sighs and masks whatever he's feeling with a cold expression "He shouldn't joke about Jason, there are things that are simply off limits, he needs to understand that."

"He's not _joking_. Goddamn it, Bruce, what do you even know about him?" Dick runs a hand through his hair, trying to gather his thoughts "He doesn't know about Jason, _our_ Jason. The one he's talking about is his imaginary friend. I don't know how he chose that name in particular, maybe he read it in Talia's files and doesn't remember anymore, but the point is… Damian's so lonely he made someone up. We gotta do something."

"Damian's hallucinating?"

"No…"

"Damian's _hallucinating_ and you decided to keep that to yourself?"

"He has an imaginary friend, don't blow this out of proportion just 'cause you're pissed at him!"

"Do you have any idea how much danger you just put us in? We were patrolling and he was seeing someone that wasn't there! We could've been killed."

"From what I heard, it saved your ass tonight."

"This is inacceptable."

"I am so done with you right now." Dick waves a hand in front of Bruce's face as he walked away "When you realize how much of an asshole you've just been to your son, maybe I'll talk to you."

"Where are you going?"

Dick didn't answer and kept walking, only stopping in front of Damian's locked door.

"Can I come in?"

"Why? Are you here to finish my spanking?"

"I'd never hit you."

"No, you would just accuse my friends of being invisible."

"Can we talk? Please?" when Damian doesn't answer, Dick decides to take another route.

Damian barely bats an eye at Dick's entrance through his window. "You know there's a reason why I locked the door."

"Yeah, you wanna be alone. That's exactly why I came, so we can be alone together."

Damian is trying very hard to keep his whole expression dark, but there's hurt shining through his eyes, and Dick wonders if anyone else would be able to notice.

"Must we talk?" Damian asks with a frown, staring intently at his bedspread "I don't think I can handle any more talking."

"We don't have to talk if you don't want to." Dick leaned against the wall, crossing his arms "Do you want me to leave?"

"I thought you came so we could stay alone together."

Damian pulled his knees to his chest as Dick sat down close to the tips of his toes. Dick touches Damian's chin lightly, turning his face to see the damage from Bruce's blow, there's already a bruise forming and Dick clenches his teeth angrily, because it wasn't enough for Bruce to hit the kid, he actually put force into it. Damian doesn't bruise easily.

Dick let his hand fall when Damian's shoulder began to twitch in discomfort.

"Was the second Robin also named Jason Todd?" Damian asked, mouth pressed into his knees.

"Why do you think that?"

"You reacted to the name, not as strongly as father, of course, but you did. And then you asked me what I knew about the Robin, it wasn't hard to connect the dots."

Dick nodded and they fell silent once again. Damian curled his toes a couple of times and Dick thought that was odd. It was such a fidgety gesture, so unlike Damian, but then again, he rarely saw Damian's feet so maybe that's where the kid concentrated all his nervous energy.

"Grayson?"

"Yeah, D?"

"Could you tell me about him? The dead Robin?"

"You can call him by his name, you know?"

"I rather not, names have been getting me into trouble lately."

Damian is joking, Dick knows that, but as it seems to happen with his every attempt at humor, it's just too soon.

"Well, this isn't a sitting up story" Dick explains standing and pulling at Damian's ankles until he's flat on his back, it's such a sudden move the kid doesn't eve react "This is a lying down story."

"You really _are_ a freak, aren't you?"

"Shush, you're ruining it." Dick laid across the bed, pulling Damian's legs to his lap and leaving his own feet on the ground "Once upon a time, Batman had a very dashing Robin. It was the first of his kind and everyone admired him."

"Don't confuse admiration with horror, you did wear hot pants."

"They were awesome and you're an ass."

"Weren't you cold?"

"What?"

"That thing was practically underwear, weren't you ever cold?"

"I thought you wanted to know about Jason, not discuss my fashion sense."

"Or lack thereof."

"That's it! You're going down!"

* * *

**N/A.:** I know Bruce's coming out like an asshole, but it's totally justifiable! If you guys want some insight on him to make it more believable, tell me in the reviews and I'll include it the next chapter, 'kay?

So remember when I said this was supposed to be a one-shot? Yeah... Now I can't stop coming up with ideas, so I blame all of you. I kinda have the end already, but there's some stuff to happen before. Shit's about to get real. Hope everyone enjoys it!


	5. crackhead princesses

Grayson left town again, fortunately for Damian, so did father. More pressing matters than to figure out if Damian was indeed delusional, he figured. His cheek was still smarting days after his last 'talk' with father.

Unfortunately for Damian, Grayson made a point of calling every single day, and he wasn't content with just talking. No, he wanted to know how Damian was, what he'd been doing, if Jason had been by – Damian refused to answer that one, he would not be mocked –, mostly he wanted to hear Damian talk.

It was immensely confusing.

Damian would be rude, complain snidely about Pennyworth, not being shy about trying to get a rise out of Grayson, testing the limits, how far he could go, but even after Damian's most crude comment, Grayson would still laugh like he knew something Damian didn't and say he'd call the next day.

A promise he hadn't broken yet.

Eventually Damian found himself spilling his truths inadvertently, which would earn a mental berating later, even if the words didn't feel as embarrassing over the phone.

He told Grayson about Pennyworth's attempts to cook what the man thought were Damian's childhood favorites. Damian didn't have favorites – couldn't afford to – but he never told the butler, just as he couldn't tell Pennyworth they weren't done properly; the seasoning was completely wrong, because there were things you couldn't pick up from a cook book.

Grayson advised him to talk to Pennyworth "Use your words, you know, the kind ones you tend to ignore."

Jason agreed, but that didn't mean anything really. He was constantly hungry.

"Hey, maybe if you manage not to be an asshole about this thing, he'll teach you how to make chilli dogs!"

Damian wasn't an asshole, he did use his kind words and Pennyworth seemed glad to have an apprentice.

How the quiet, peaceful lessons managed to turn the kitchen into a war field was beyond Damian. He blamed Jason, the food fights and the chilli dog obsession. Thank God Pennyworth wouldn't be home for a couple of hours.

"You _could_ start doing the dishes." Damian said sternly checking the contents of the boiling pot in front of him.

"Yup, I totally could." Jason answered carelessly, still sprinkling Damian's hair with flour "Oh wait, you meant like seriously?"

"I do not care if you do it laughingly as long as you start being useful as you clearly can't be pleasant."

Jason sighs miserably, but drags his feet to the sink "I thought you invited me to eat."

"I did not invite you at all."

"You're such a slave driver."

"And you are a whiny bitch."

Jason dropped his hands into the sink, making a loud clunk "How can you say that? I don't _whine_."

Damian snorts despite himself, because of course that's the part Jason would complain about.

"Good heavens!" both boys turn so fast at the new voice they bump shoulders. Jason flicks his wrist against Damian's and gets the same treatment back.

"Pennyworth" Damian greets stiffly "I wasn't expecting you to return so soon."

"And is that the reason why you decided to make havoc in my kitchen?"

Damian goes perfectly still and Jason flicks his wrist again, this time in encouragement, which gets Damian clearing his throat "I was merely testing my proficiency in one of the dishes you so kindly instructed me on."

He had a little hope it wasn't so obvious he was kissing ass, but Jason chuckled low in his chest and squashed it.

Pennyworth narrowed his eyes at both of them critically, then lowered himself seated next to one of the few clear spots of the counter "So. What are we having?"

Damian and Jason exchanged a look.

"Told ya he wouldn't be pissed" Jason whispered through a smirk.

"Jason has an unhealthy obsession with chilli dogs. I thought it was appropriate and it seemed easy enough."

"And the bread!" Jason stage whispered, poking him with his elbow "Tell him about the bread."

"_And the bread…_" Damian echoed tiredly "Made from scratch."

"Alright. Let's see it."

After the second handful of flour to the face, Damian had forbidden Jason to touch anything, it didn't make him stay out of the way though; Jason followed him like a shadow, keeping his hands clutched at the small of his back, peaking at everything over Damian's shoulder. If it wasn't for Pennyworth's critical stare drilling the back of his neck, Damian would've tackled Jason to the ground and shoved flour down his throat. Again.

Damian placed his version of a chilli dog in front of Pennyworth and stepped back, watching in silence as the man took a bite and chewed slowly. He felt Jason hovering close.

Pennyworth hummed thoughtfully "This is almost worth the chaos. Very well done, Master Damian."

Damian's chest swelled with pride, but the ringing phone kept him from thinking of an appropriate answer. Pennyworth left to get it and Jason leaned on his elbows on the space left by the man on the counter.

"Huh."

"What?" Damian asked out of habit, he didn't care and showed it by beginning to clear their mess.

"They _really_ never stay in one room for more than five minutes. How do you people even talk?"

"We don't."

"My parents wouldn't leave. _Ever._ They drove each other completely mad, but I don't even know, maybe it felt like a challenge or something. To see who would punk out and leave the room first."

"It must've been delightful."

"Oh yeah. Inspirational, I'd say. Kinda like a Lifetime movie." he sat on the counter, letting his legs dangle over the edge and taking little bites out of Pennyworth's forgotten plate "Is he the granddad who taught that wicked dart thing?"

"No." Damian said harshly "Pennyworth is _not_ my grandfather. Don't ever say that again."

"Wow, chill!"

"Grandfather did things Pennyworth couldn't even conceive, and with good reason. He is… a good man."

Jason frowns absorbing that "I get that." Damian turns to glare, but Jason's face is earnest as he threw a dishrag over his shoulder "But he is kinda granddad-ish."

"I wouldn't know."

"Well, if afterschool specials taught me anything is that grandparents are like all wise and love to stuff you with food and try to make you feel better when your parents screw up."

Damian didn't know what an afterschool special was, but…

"Pennyworth _does_ give good advice. And his passion for food is quite clear."

"See? Not all granddads need to be assholes. According to TV anyway."

"I suppose you're right. He does act like that towards Grayson and Drake."

"Not with you?"

"My mother's side of the family makes people uncomfortable."

"So?"

"_I_ come from my mother side of the family."

They went through the motions of cleaning the kitchen, it's quite quick now that Jason's being actually helpful even if he kept talking about "the Crackhead Beauty, a tale inspired on my own experiences" and how it would be a "killer movie" and that it was "an angle Disney should explore".

"There's a _huge_ demographic completely left out. I just want to see a Disney princess whoring out for drug money. The prince could be a pimp!"

Damian knew in a deeper level that that wasn't funny; it was crude and tasteless, but he could only bite on his tongue when laughter erupted from his lips. Not only it made Jason smirk smugly, it encouraged him.

Pennyworth still wasn't back to check on their progress; Damian concluded he was running an errand for father and would probably take long, so both boys sat down after finishing their work with glasses of soda, Jason was eating again.

"Jason," Damian called, staring at the tiny bubbles on his glass "where do you live?"

"Why? Wanna have a slumber party? Can your pretty brother come?"

"You told me your parents were dead. Do you live alone?"

"What if I do?"

"Do you like it?"

Jason takes a sip "It's fine, I guess… I get to see some pretty weird shit, even helped out Batman and Robin the other day." he lifted his eyes to Damian then, daring him to contradict.

Damian toyed with the idea of playing coy and calling him out on his 'lie', but feared for the kitchen's safety "Do you miss her?" he asked instead.

"You mean the mental case that birthed me into this world only to punish the fucker who got her knocked up in the first place?" Jason asks over the rim of his glass, eyes narrowed.

"I mean your mother, yes."

"Yeah." Jason's voice was curt and dry "I miss her. I hated her, but it doesn't make me stop missing her."

"I get that." Damian says softly.

This time when Jason leaves, he bumps his shoulder with Damian's with a self-satisfied smile that means absolutely nothing to Damian. As he watched Jason walking away, he wondered once again why they were friends, and quickly wiped away his own little grin.

Pennyworth was in the kitchen when Damian got back, looking decidedly mellow.

"Did I miss something?" Damian asked with a glance around but finding nothing misplaced "I thought everything would be to your liking."

"Oh it is, Master Damian" Alfred smiled dolefully and Damian frowned bewildered "Would you mind sitting with me for a little while?"

Damian was slightly hesitant at first, but didn't refuse the butler, joining him on the counter.

"Am I about to be lectured? If I had known you would return so soon I would have made sure that-"

"No need to be so cautious all the time, young sir. You did nothing wrong." he reached a slow hand towards Damian "May I?"

Damian allowed the intruding hand, tensing imperceptibly on instinct, he was mostly sure Pennyworth would never harm him intentionally. The butler's fingers ruffled his hair making a white cloud float around his head like a halo.

"Flour." Damian concludes flatly and Pennyworth is smiling again, not so wistful anymore.

"Did I ever thank you for the help with the seasoning on those dishes?"

Damian shifts awkwardly "There's no need for that, we have simply exchanged knowledge."

"I thank you nonetheless. And for the record" the man leaned in and added conversationally "you don't make me uncomfortable."

There's a moment where Damian considers bolting from his seat and throwing himself off the Gotham Bridge, but the sound of footsteps keeps him from moving.

"Father's back." he announced, even if he felt it was mostly unnecessary.

Bruce appears at the doorway and looks over Damian "What happened to your hair?"

Not even a hello then.

Grayson's voice telling him to use his 'kind words' cross his mind, but instead of that, it's like he channeled his so called brother "Gotham was attacked by a mad baker in your absence. Drake was nearly choked to death with a baguette."

And the look his father gives him is a revelation; he suddenly understands exactly why Grayson acts the way he does if that look is anything to go by. That expression right there is _priceless_.

"The doughnuts were his doom." Pennyworth added, without any hint of humor, obviously enjoying father's scowl just as much. "But he isn't to blame, who would've thought his plan would be foiled by a horde of policeman with cups of coffee?"

Damian felt his lips twitching as he shared a glance with the butler and found the same look mirrored back.

Father was not amused. "Damian, we need to talk."

Dick needed to haul ass back to Gotham asap. Because his awesome-big-brother-plan? Weak. Embarrassingly so.

Sure, calling Damian had been awkwardly hilarious at first – and a pretty decent start – but things were going down the hill _fast_.

Like, lightning fast. Like things were going for a lovely stroll, misstepped, were now all broken to shit with exposed fractures and a twisted neck at the bottom of hill.

He kept replaying the last time he spoke to Damian, but it literally had been:

"Hey, D!"

"_Hello, Grayson._"

"So, how's it going? Has Jason been around much?"

Click. Dial tone.

It's not like Damian hadn't been pissy about Jason before, but this was kind of extreme. He had never hung up on Dick before.

The next three days he only got Alfred and some lame excuses. "Oh, Master Damian is walking the dog.", "Master Damian is showering." And Dick's favorite "Master Damian's asleep."

Yeah. Asleep. The kid who barely got 3 hours a night by _choice_ was taking a nap in the middle of the afternoon.

"Alf, did I do something?"

"_I'm not sure I understand._"

"You understand. Why doesn't he wanna talk to me?"

"_If I had to guess, I'd say he is… somewhat bedridden._"

"What?! Why didn't you say so? What the hell is going on there, Alfred?"

"_You should come home, Richard._"

He doesn't even remember the ride back to the city, if he didn't know any better, he'd say he teleported. Alfred let him in and ushered him to Bruce's office without a word. Not that Dick needed any, he could hear the voices and boy, they sounded _pissed._

He threw the door open and while Bruce shot him a cold look, Damian barely spared him a glance.

"Why is this even an issue?" the boy asked a little hoarse, and Dick wondered how long they'd been going at it "Just because you've never met him, it does not mean he isn't real!"

Bruce was not moved by his son's words "Dick met him." Dick stepped back, so not wanting to be a part of this "Tell him, Dick."

Damian turned wild eyes at him "Yes! _Tell_ _him_, Richard!" Damian only called him Richard when annoyed or extremely distressed and the latter had only happened once. This was the second time, and Dick felt sick "Tell him how the three of us spent an afternoon together. Tell him about the cartoons."

"So you _were_ indulging him in this lunacy." Bruce said sharply, eyeing Dick coolly again.

"Richard, _please_." Damian spoke over Bruce "Tell him."

"D, I…" Dick tried, but he felt like suffocating. This was not what he was expecting, not what he wanted to say to the kid "Well, I think Jason… no. Maybe we just…"

Damian breathed raggedly "Why are you doing this?" he looked disgusted and so fucking _betrayed_ "Why are you siding with _him_?" he pointed at his father not looking away from Dick, his next words were enounced slowly, begging for understanding "You saw Jason, you let him choose what we would watch. He gets awkward when you're near and claims it's because you're too pretty. You two have the same wretched sense of humor, I thought you liked him."

"There was no one there." Dick tells him in the softest voice he can utter "He's not real, D."

"Stop it, Richard, this is not a joke."

"He is not joking, Damian." Damian ignored Bruce completely.

"Did father put you up to this?"

"I didn't put him up to anything, this is just the truth." Bruce stepped closer and Damian automatically stepped back, unintentionally leaning towards Dick. The kid tensed and tried to sidestep him, but Dick clasped a hand around the back of his neck. It was meant as supportive, Damian seemed ready to snap "You are hallucinating, and ignoring the medication won't help you at all."

"What medication?" Dick asked and Damian turned his head to look at him with a sneer etched to his lips.

"Father has been drugging me."

"I've been meaning to, Damian spits it out at the first chance he gets."

"I cannot concentrate!" Damian snaps through gritted teeth "They slow my reaction time, my vision darkens, it feels like I'm _drowning_."

"Bruce, aren't you overreacting a little?" Dick tries, thumb massaging slow circles on Damian's neck "I'm sure it's just a phase, now that he knows the truth, he'll just grow out of it."

Damian shrugs out from Dick's touch "You asked about him," he whispered harshly "Every day you asked, as if it were important, as if it mattered" Dick tries to touch him again, but Damian leans away from it, hesitating for a bit before adding "and you were _lying_."

"No, no, no, D." Dick whispers back desperately. It's a poor excuse for a private conversation and he feels Bruce's eyes burning the side of his face "I was just trying to-"

"Gather information for father." Damian completed in disgust, averting his eyes before turning to Bruce with a squared posture "Shall we end this?"

Bruce hands him a pill which he swallows dry, then opens his mouth to prove it. He cuts his eyes to Dick for one short moment as he left, but it's enough to crush Dick's heart completely.

"It had to be done, Dick." Bruce tells him in that detached clinical way Dick hated so much "It was getting dangerous."

"Yeah… We were dangerously close of getting him to trust us." he says softly staring at the spot Damian occupied a second ago "But don't worry, Bruce, that won't happen now."

* * *

**A/N.:** Is this long? This is long. This is really long. And I had to tone it down, because it was supposed to be longer!

I have to say, though I kinda think everyone considers Dick and Damian's the main relationship here, I kinda love cooking up whatever craziness Jason will say and do.

And Bruce is a dick, but what else is new? He'll get better eventually, I think, maybe. Perhaps? I can't even with this guy anymore.

Thanks for the follows and reviews! I love hearing what you think!


	6. worst parents ever

The world was sluggish. Or perhaps Damian himself was, he couldn't quite tell anymore.

He sat on his bed with pen and paper, but nothing ever came out of that, he'd start drawing a line and his mind would wander away – it happened constantly, he lost half an hour like that and it felt like only a moment. This time the lack of concentration wasn't really his fault, it seemed to be raining rocks.

No. Not rain, someone was throwing rocks at his window.

Damian found himself writing 'Jason' on his sketchbook, but that couldn't be right. Jason wasn't real. Was he? He seemed real enough, too loud, obsessed about things Damian didn't know or understand, kept… touching Damian. It was unnerving.

The next rock was huge. Maybe if it broke the glass father would consider the possibility that Damian was telling the truth.

"Come on, man!" he heard Jason shout "I know you're in there! I can see your big head! What the fuck, Damian?"

Fog suddenly appeared startling Damian and keeping him from seeing through the window. It took him a moment realized he'd been breathing on the glass; he didn't even notice the walk from the bed, but was now kneeling on the window seat, that's how Jason saw him.

He figured if Jason was truly real, Damian didn't want to be seen like that. And if the other boy was a figment of his imagination as everyone was so keen on believing, well… better keep him outside, then.

Damian dragged himself back to bed and fell face first, trying to block out Jason's voice and Titus' occasional whines. The dog rarely left Damian's side these days – was currently laying on the floor, by the foot of the bed – and, as if he felt his master wasn't ok, would glare at anyone who came near Damian. It was particularly amusing when father was the one being glared at.

"Dude, you suck!" Damian tensed and turned his head slowly to look over his shoulder. Jason was perched on the window. Another moment lost; how long could it have been if Jason had time to climb the wall? "If you wanted to sleep that bad, you just had to tell me!"

Really, what could Damian answer to that?

"Did you really break in to tell me that you would leave if I did not want to see you?"

"Well yeah!" Jason rolls his eyes as if this was obvious and flops down on the edge of the mattress, kicking Damian's legs away and leaning on the headboard "Just so you know, climbing was a bitch. And call off Cujo, he keeps growling at me."

Damian stared blankly, then pulled a pillow over his head.

"Oh, so that's what you're doing now?" Jason said as he kicked Damian's leg again, harder "Ignoring me?"

"Yes."

"Fine, dude. I'm not leaving, so… the joke's on you."

"Stay as long as you want, just…" Damian sighed and enunciated slowly "Shut _the fuck_ up."

There were steps and Damian knew the exact second the door would open and father would peak in "Who are you talking to?"

Making a show of pulling the pillow away from his head and blinking owlishly, Damian gazed blankly at father "The dog."

Right on cue Titus climbs on the bed and drapes himself over the small of Damian's back with a slight huff.

Father narrows his eyes suspiciously and Titus groans, getting comfortable. The dogs weight and warmth keep Damian grounded.

"Alright." Father finally said "If you need anything-"

"I'm sure Pennyworth will provide it." Damian spoke over him, burying his face back in the pillow.

The door closed with a soft click and Damian heard a sigh of relief from Jason's general direction "I don't think he saw me."

"What?"

"You're grounded, right? That's gotta be why you're so bitchy."

Damian forced himself to lift his head to glance at Jason, and found only a mass of unruly black hair over the edge of the mattress before Jason's face made an appearance "So you hid" it was meant as a statement, but it came out almost as a question.

Jason blushes lightly, but the color spreads through his face and even his ears flush pink "I was covering _your_ ass, you ungrateful… ass." he finishes awkwardly.

Damian sits up and closes his eyes, swaying a little "I… can't talk to you."

He can hear Jason's frown "Why?"

"You are not supposed to be here."

"Why the hell not?"

"You do not exist."

Damian's eyes are open now, he watches as Jason stands, as his face grows hard.

"You're shitting me, right?"

"No one else sees you."

"Your dog fucking hates me," Jason gestures at Titus "he has to see me to hate me."

Damian pets the dog's head absent mindedly, still watching Jason "Somehow I don't believe that argument will work on father."

"That's bullshit. You know I exist, right?" getting no answer, Jason added "I _am_ real."

"I am not so certain anymore."

They stared at each other. Damian didn't want to let this moment pass him by and he began to count to keep himself focused; he had only made it to 4 when Jason looked away and walked back to the window.

"I thought we were friends." Jason's voice was barely above a whisper and then he was gone.

It felt like there was sand in Damian's eyes, they were _burning_. He tried to blink it away and when that didn't work, Damian hid his face on Titus' fur.

Damian awakes when his pillow runs away and starts barking. He turns startle towards the door, but there's nobody there and Titus' still huffing.

His eyes cut to the window and again found no one.

The dog wouldn't settle down, walking back and forth around the bed; Damian tried to find what was bothering Titus and saw a shadow moving under door.

Now he had a decision to make, he could bust whoever was hovering by the door, he could ignore both the intruder and the noisy dog and maybe go back to sleep, he could slip out the window and just… leave.

"What." he found himself barking loudly after silencing Titus with a hand gesture.

"Can I come in?" Grayson's voice was slightly muffled, like he spoke too close to the doorframe.

Damian didn't even know Grayson was still in town.

"D, please?" Grayson pleaded in a whisper.

Why should Damian let him in? Grayson was most likely digging for more information for father.

Fuck him.

"Fuck you!"

Grayson sighed loudly and stepped away. Damian was almost comforted by the fact that he knew exactly what would happen next, he could pinpoint the second Grayson would come in through his window.

"Must we do this every time?" Damian asked tiredly, not bothering to lift his eyes from the bedspread "I want to be left _alone_."

"What happened to us being alone together?" Grayson countered lightly.

"Enough with the charade, Grayson. You've got me medicated already, I do not need to be appeased."

"I'm not trying to appease you," Grayson approaches slowly, sitting beside Damian and making his best to face him "I'm trying to _help_ you."

"Oh… Now the double-crossing is absolutely understandable. Thank you."

Grayson sighed again; it was grating Damian's nerves "I didn't double-cross you, geez."

Now _that_ got Damian's attention "You didn't? I was probably confused by the fact that you asked me constantly about my friend while not being able to see him, nor prove his existence and then using all the knowledge you would get out of me to inform father of my obviously deteriorated mental state. My mistake."

"That's not how it happened…" Grayson sounded upset. Good. Damian was upset too when he managed to cut through the medication fog enough to concentrate.

"I do not understand any of this." Damian said in a hushed voice "How can you people claim he is not real?" he lifts his eyes for the first time since Grayson came in and beyond the traitor's head, there's Jason perched on the window, half of his body outside, like he's not sure if he's coming or going "I- He- Titus _hates_ him. He _broke into_ the grounds over and over again, mostly to mock me for my social ineptitude. Like that is _my_ fault. His parents died and he lives alone, that is why he is always here. I think he dislikes the silence being alone brings and even though he knows I like it, he would _never_ cease his talking." his voice drops to a low murmur "He listened. When it was important. He is my _friend_." Damian averts his gaze from both people staring at him, eyes burning again with no way to seek refuge on Titus' fur.

Damian nearly flinches when Grayson's hand engulfs the back of his neck and pulls him slightly forward so Grayson can press his lips to the top of Damian's head.

_Look behind you._ Damian begged Grayson silently._ Just a glance and you'll see him and everything will be fine…_

Grayson didn't turn, his attention solely on his alleged little brother. Damian hated him right then.

"Master Richard?" Pennyworth's voice filtered through the closed door.

Not even trying to disguise his eye roll, Damian sighed "Just go."

"I will be right back." Grayson told him as he stood "Don't go anywhere."

Where would Damian go? Grayson was being moronic.

"You are a moron."

"Don't even move!" Grayson shouted, already on the hallway.

Damian had his face in his hands when Jason spoke again "Why didn't you tell him I was here?"

"What if you _aren't_?"

"Oh, come on! I know stuff you don't, how can that happen if you're just hallucinating me or whatever? I had a family, you know that!"

"I know nothing. You have never spoken of them, only that they are dead."

Jason's breathing harshly, flexing his fingers. He looked ready to come to blows and Damian would welcome it, but instead he said "Mom was a junkie. She'd get so high she wouldn't know me anymore. I'm pretty sure she turned tricks when she thought I was asleep. She OD'd when I was nine, I found the body and sat there holding her hand and waiting for help to come. It took four hours for someone to show up. Your turn."

Something twisted in Damian's chest at Jason's brutal honesty; that kind of openness made him uncomfortable, but he wouldn't owe Jason anything. "Mother kills people for a living. She's a highly trained assassin and the head of an international criminal organization who disowned me years ago when I chose not to heed to her every command. I only hear from her when she tries to assassinate me and even that is a rare occasion nowadays."

"This is not a fucking contest!" Jason bristled "There's no prize if yours is the worst fucking parent _ever_." getting no reaction out of Damian, the other boy sighed throwing his whole body into it "Fine, dad was an angry drunk. Mom tried to stop it sometimes, but usually she was so out of it that she didn't even feel the hits or cared when he turned on me."

"Father only found out about my existence when I was ten. He did not want me and he will never trust me. I barely know him."

"I don't live alone, I've been living on the streets since my mom OD'd. I did… some pretty nasty shit to get by. I used to come here to get away from that. Still do."

"Father has had me under house arrest for over four years. As much as he dislikes my presence, he's even more terrified mother will get me back."

"Aren't you gonna ask me?"

Damian startles at the sudden change of topic "About what?"

"About what I had to do to survive on the streets."

"Do you want to tell me?"

Jason scoffs "Not really, no. But aren't you worried? I could be a thief or a murderer. Hell, this is Gotham, I could probably be both."

"You did whatever you needed to in order to survive." Damian says, shrugging one shoulder.

A deep frown marks Jason's usually carefree face. He doesn't move for a long second, then joins Damian on the bed and picks up the forgotten pen lying beside Damian's sketchbook, twirling it between his fingers "I have some… gaps in my head. Can't remember certain stuff that happened after my mom died." he pulls Damian's hand and starts writing on it "There are… flashes. Words, sometimes faces. And when I look at your brother I get this… sick feeling in my gut, like… Like I screwed up with him, but I can't remember."

"They believe I'm insane and a danger to myself and others. That I somehow invented you based off someone I've never met, someone who died years ago."

Jason stops his writing for a second to give Damian a look "That doesn't count; I heard you're little chat with pretty boy, I got _that_. Not that I was a remake of some dead dude, but still… You go again."

Damian scrunched his whole face in concentration while he thought, yet Jason apparently couldn't wait "You should've told me your dad's been beating you 'cause of me." he says darkly "I could've helped."

"What?" Damian's eyes snap to Jason's face, shock cutting through his muddled brain like a bolt of lightning "He doesn't beat me."

"Yeah, right" Jason snorts, but there's no humor at all in his expression "I've seen the bruises, dude. A week ago half your face was black and blue. Just 'cause I don't talk about shit doesn't mean I don't notice. I thought it was because of some weird ass fighting training you were doing, that's _all_ you seem to do anyway, but now he has you drugged off your ass…" he sighs "You should've told me."

"First of all, father does not beat me. Second, my training schedule or exercises are not weird in the slightest and third how in hell could you tell?"

Jason seems to have finished his writing, because he throws the pen over his shoulder and scrunches his nose in confusion "About the beatings?"

"How could you tell that I have been… medicated."

The answer comes with a smirk "Dude…" Jason makes a show out of the simple act of standing "Legal or illegal, I know my drugs."

"Oh, _shut up._"

And Jason laughs, it's hearty and almost otherworldly after such heavy conversation, but it dies down fast as he begins to pace slowly around the room.

"You think your brother's coming-"

"I trusted him." Damian swallows embarrassed for spilling the words, but Jason doesn't seem to notice.

"Who? Pretty boy?"

"No. Grayson."

"Grayson _is_ the 'pretty boy'."

"Oh. I forgot you fancy him." Jason snorted but kept silent otherwise "He sided with father. I was blindsided, he never gave me a chance."

This time, there is no warning when the door is thrown open, nearly hitting Jason "Who are you talking to?"

"The dog." Damian answers automatically before he even realizes it was Grayson who asked.

"Oh really? And where is Titus?"

Damian looks around and the dog is nowhere to be found "Under the bed." he lies smoothly.

"D, this gotta stop." Grayson tells him, running a hand over his face

Damian's blood boils "If you really want to help me, _Richard_" he points to the door "get _the fuck_ out."

Grayson walks in, he opens his mouth, preparing for what will probably be the most useless speech in the history of useless speeches when he freezes, grabbing Damian's hand "Why did you write this?"

Damian looks to Jason, who steps from behind the door with a sour expression, hand shoved into his jeans pockets "Because I felt like it."

Both boys watch Dick for any reaction to Jason's voice and don't find any. Damian deflates and echoes "I felt like it."

The flatness in Damian's voice doesn't discourage Grayson, who grips Damian's hand tighter "You told me Jason's parents died, right? Can you tell me their names?"

"No." Damian nearly growls, mood suddenly darkening. He's had enough of this "Let go of me."

"D? Dami? Please." Grayson kneels in front of Damian's legs; if he was trying to get at Damian's eye level, he failed completely and now faced the boy's chest "I'll leave, I'll never come back if that's what you want, just tell me Jason's mom's name."

Damian closes his eyes and bites his lips to keep from punching Grayson in the throat.

"Catherine." Jason informs gently, almost sadly.

"Catherine Todd." Damian gritted out, concentrated on the drawing he'd done on Jason's tennis shoes weeks ago "Now leave."

He nearly missed the way Grayson's face turned ashen "Thank you."

As his traitor fake brother leaves, Damian lowers his eyes to the hand Grayson had grabbed onto before and finds Jason's handwriting. He doesn't understand what was so upsetting about those words.

Jason flops down on the floor, shoulder bumping on Damian's leg.

"Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"What does 'Little Wing' mean?"

* * *

A/N.: It's 2:30 in the morning and I definetely should be asleep after having such a crap couple of (weeks) days, but I couldn't help it. This chapter was almost done and leaving it at _almost _was driving me mad!

I hope you guys enjoy it. If the storytelling is a bit odd blame Damian's medication. (forgive my poetic licence in dealing with the meds, I didn't wanna get into what he was taking or explore the side effects, I hope it doesn't piss anyone off, it just fit the plot)

I have the end nearly done, but the road there is a total mistery to me, so stuff might get a little crazy. Well, crazi_er_; I only promisse to do my best not to fuck it up.

Thank you all for the follows and the reviews! They make my day and inspire me so, so much!

Ps.: Oh and if you guys like the comic/movie Kick Ass check out my other fic "You Hit Like a Girl", it's a crossover with Batman Universe and it still features Damian of course. He's my murdereous little muse


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